


Scarlet Letter

by AtLeastWeWontBeLonelyInHell



Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Angst, Dark, Drama, F/M, dark themes, dark&twisty, re-post from 2010
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-16
Updated: 2012-06-16
Packaged: 2019-10-11 05:17:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17440679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AtLeastWeWontBeLonelyInHell/pseuds/AtLeastWeWontBeLonelyInHell
Summary: It's Katherine he sees first and it takes him more than 30 seconds to realize it's Elena.





	Scarlet Letter

**Scarlet Letter**

**.**

**.**

 

There he is-

Damon Salvatore-

trapped in Mystic Falls.

_(Again I might add.)_

Trapped in this town he hates so much,

_trapped right here-_

-with his brother's girlfriend.

(The girl he loves.)

_The girl he'll never have._

At least not in her lifetime.

(Not even in his)

_Whatever that means._

* * *

 

Stefan's not coming back,

_-Damon knows-_

knows for sure even if he doesn't want to.

And he knows he should turn her-

_of course she would stake him for that-_

but at least she could take care of herself.

_(And he could leave.)_

But he can't turn her,

– she doesn't want him to-

(she doesn't want him to leave either).

_(And he's like a damn puppy now.)_

Well at least he tries.

_(Fuck, they should 've let him die.)_

* * *

 

It's a bloody mess Stefan's leaving behind and Damon knows he has to do something.

(To save his damn brother)

_(And the world.)_

(- maybe- )

But he's no hero. He really isn't.

(And he doesn't want to be one either.)

He's the bad brother

_( – that's the unwritten rule in their history – )_

and it has to stay that way.

(Their world has changed enough)

He takes Elena with him, because she asks him to.

_(- and he can't leave her alone in Mystic Falls anyway.)_

That's what he tells himself every night.

* * *

 

It happens when they arrive in Chicago.

He wants her to stay in the car-

_– but like the stubborn girl she is-_

she doesn't listen.

And he's too tired to fight.

She doesn't scream, doesn't cry, doesn't even start to vomit-

_(like he wants to)_

– she's just standing in the doorway-

and he knows she won't be the same girl ever again.

(He wishes she'd just stayed in the damn car.)

* * *

 

New York, three weeks later-

(It's the worst Damon's ever seen in his entire (undead) life)

there's so much blood-

_it's unbearable to breathe-_

(even for him)

_(- and he's already dead)._

Stefan has ripped a family-

a _whole_ family-

(into pieces)

– and Damon has to fight back his emotions.

_It's horrific._

He'd never seen anything like it.

(And he doesn't want to ever again).

He's not sure how long she'd been standing behind him, before he realizes she's there.

She's pale and stares at the horrible sight in front of her-

and he knows that's it.

They're going home.

(Stefan's not Stefan anymore.)

She starts to vomit all over the bloody wooden floor-

and for the first time in 149 years he does the same.

(It doesn't help through.)

* * *

 

He sets the house on fire an hour later,

and they're watching until there's nothing left.

_Ashes to Ashes._

_Dust to Dust._

(He wants to burn himself)

But there's already nothing left.

* * *

 

She doesn't speak after that.

Not a single word.

Damon takes her home-

(because that's all he can do)

and lets Bonnie cast a spell-

_(- yeah, they did that before – )._

He asks Katherine to look after Elena-

(he knows she'll do it no matter what she says)-

and he's out of town before the sun can rise again.

(He can't be with her anymore).

He isn't a hero.

He can't save her.

(At least that's what he needs to believe).

* * *

 

He finds Stefan in Italy a few months later-

and it's nothing like Damon ever expected to find.

Klaus ist dead,

(-Stefan killed him-)

_and Stefan is no longer the brother Damon used to know._

He's not just a ripper,

(and that would be bad enough)

he's more cruel than that-

and Damon knows he has to kill him.

(- But he can't -)

_He's his brother after all._

(He still loves him).

* * *

 

It's Caroline who calls him and begs him to come home.

He says no.

(No he can't.)

She says „It's Elena.“

And he takes the next flight _home_.

_(I'd always come for you)_

* * *

 

It's Katherine he sees first-

_– and it takes him more than 30 seconds-_

to realize it's Elena.

(Of course the damn witch couldn't even cast a spell)

She smiles-

_-that smile he missed so much-_

and looks more beautiful than ever.

„I'm sorry“-

is all she says-

and he wants to kiss her so badly.

* * *

 

He doesn't ask what happened and she doesn't tell him.

It's not like it matters anyway.

 _„It would have been you,_ “ she says.

_„If I'd met you first, it would have been you from the beginning."_

He knows.

(And maybe he always had.)

He takes her then and there-

_(on the stairs to her bedroom)_

– and tells her how much he loves her.

_She's his now._

(No matter what).

* * *

 

It's Katherine who warns them.

_That Stefan's coming for revenge one day._

And it's like the whole Klaus incident all over again-

_(but Elena stays calm)_

like she did the first time.

(And it's not like Stefan could _kill_  her  _again_ )

They ask Bonnie and Jeremy to leave town, as well as Matt, Caroline and Tyler.

(It's not their war to fight.)

It's Katherine who takes care of Alaric-

_( it's creepy)_

and it scares the crap out of Damon, but Elena just laughs.

(And Damon's glad she's laughing again.)

* * *

 

When Stefan comes _home_ –

– he starts a blood bath –

_(like Katherine told them he would)._

It's Elena who fools him and gets him to the boarding house one night-

_(they just have to kill him)_

even if they don't want to.

_(But there's nothing left of the man they once knew)_

There's a sad smile on her face,

_– when she bends over Stefan,_

and tells him goodbye.

„I'm sorry,“ she whispers-

(and Damon knows she truly is)

_– they both are._

She kills Stefan in one quick move-

_– it happens fast-_

too fast.

_(Even for Damon.)_

And then-

_after all these years-_

it's over.

* * *

 

They set the house on fire-

_– there's nothing to come back for-_

watching the flames from the woods.

It's Elena who takes his hand first-

 _„Let's go,“_  she says-

and he just nods.

They're gone long before the morning comes-

_– leaving their scarlet letter in the crackling fire behind._

**_._ **

**_._ **


End file.
